Sunday, December 27, 2015
Sunday, November 22, 2015
The aftermath of Clermont Draft Legal Sprint and Challenge Florida
Things went good and not as good...
First the DL Sprint:
I honestly expected to place around 15th in this race. There were a lot of good athletes there and I wasn't at my best. My swim was at about 90%, my bike and run were about 80%, still I did better than I expected.
I swam conservative at first which was probably a good decision. I stayed out of trouble and picked it up after the first turn where I passed about 25 people and came out of the water about 2 min down from the leaders but only about 10 sec behind a decent group of riders.
When I got on the bike I quickly caught a group of 5 riders and stayed with them, the group swelled to about 20 riders between the previous wave, then later waves. I was one of 6 riders doing the work but needed to go hard enough to keep faster runners behind me so I never went into the red zone.
I got off the bike in fairly good condition but was only able to run a 23' 5K because of the heat (90°F and 80% Humidity) and my poor run conditioning. Because of that I managed to finish 11th in my AG and was just out of the qualifying position.
By some stroke of luck either someone got a DQ in front of me or a previous qualification (there were 2 people in front of me that already qualified for Cozumel) I was given a slot to ITU Worlds in Cozumel Mexico.
What I need to do to better my performance:
The fastest swimmers came out of the water in about 11 minutes and I came out in 13:25. Realistically I think I can get under 12 minutes but 11 will be a stretch. If I came out of the water at 12 minutes I could catch the guys just in front of me by my transition speed and biking ability but probably only about 15-20 seconds. I feel with a good focus on swimming I will be able to swim a 750 meter open water swim near 12 minutes and get into a good group of riders.
The fastest runners in my AG run near 18 for the day. That is much quicker than I have ever gone and feel that is out of my reach even on a cooler day. However I do feel that running under 20 minutes is achievable. It will take a lot of running this winter and a good focus during the summer to achieve this but I feel it's within my reach.
Challenge Florida was a bust:
The swim went well and statistically I do well in no-wetsuit swims. However it was very hot again (same as above) and I wasn't in the best running shape. I tried to go really easy on the bike and I probably went too easy. I had a goal of keeping my HR down near 130 and that was just too low, my power was closer to 150 watts and I should have just rode nearer 160-165 to come in about 10 minutes faster.
The run was just a death march. Hot on the way out, turn along the canal was just baking hot with no wind, turn around into a slight breeze then turn back to the transition area where there was no wind again. Turned around and did the course again but a little slower. A 1:58 is all I could manage but with my less than optimal running condition I was happy with it.
Lesson learned: 6 weeks is not enough time between two HIM's to do well at both, especially when the first on was Long Course Nationals and I went in unprepared for that one as well. I think that if the first one was built up to and the second one was race prepped I could have done better. This was not the case as Caseville (earlier in the season) was the build up and LCN was the race prepped one.
Also, 4 HIM's in one season is too many bigger races for me. Next season will have to big races and one bigger race to build up to mid season.
First the DL Sprint:
I honestly expected to place around 15th in this race. There were a lot of good athletes there and I wasn't at my best. My swim was at about 90%, my bike and run were about 80%, still I did better than I expected.
I swam conservative at first which was probably a good decision. I stayed out of trouble and picked it up after the first turn where I passed about 25 people and came out of the water about 2 min down from the leaders but only about 10 sec behind a decent group of riders.
When I got on the bike I quickly caught a group of 5 riders and stayed with them, the group swelled to about 20 riders between the previous wave, then later waves. I was one of 6 riders doing the work but needed to go hard enough to keep faster runners behind me so I never went into the red zone.
I got off the bike in fairly good condition but was only able to run a 23' 5K because of the heat (90°F and 80% Humidity) and my poor run conditioning. Because of that I managed to finish 11th in my AG and was just out of the qualifying position.
By some stroke of luck either someone got a DQ in front of me or a previous qualification (there were 2 people in front of me that already qualified for Cozumel) I was given a slot to ITU Worlds in Cozumel Mexico.
What I need to do to better my performance:
The fastest swimmers came out of the water in about 11 minutes and I came out in 13:25. Realistically I think I can get under 12 minutes but 11 will be a stretch. If I came out of the water at 12 minutes I could catch the guys just in front of me by my transition speed and biking ability but probably only about 15-20 seconds. I feel with a good focus on swimming I will be able to swim a 750 meter open water swim near 12 minutes and get into a good group of riders.
The fastest runners in my AG run near 18 for the day. That is much quicker than I have ever gone and feel that is out of my reach even on a cooler day. However I do feel that running under 20 minutes is achievable. It will take a lot of running this winter and a good focus during the summer to achieve this but I feel it's within my reach.
Challenge Florida was a bust:
The swim went well and statistically I do well in no-wetsuit swims. However it was very hot again (same as above) and I wasn't in the best running shape. I tried to go really easy on the bike and I probably went too easy. I had a goal of keeping my HR down near 130 and that was just too low, my power was closer to 150 watts and I should have just rode nearer 160-165 to come in about 10 minutes faster.
The run was just a death march. Hot on the way out, turn along the canal was just baking hot with no wind, turn around into a slight breeze then turn back to the transition area where there was no wind again. Turned around and did the course again but a little slower. A 1:58 is all I could manage but with my less than optimal running condition I was happy with it.
Lesson learned: 6 weeks is not enough time between two HIM's to do well at both, especially when the first on was Long Course Nationals and I went in unprepared for that one as well. I think that if the first one was built up to and the second one was race prepped I could have done better. This was not the case as Caseville (earlier in the season) was the build up and LCN was the race prepped one.
Also, 4 HIM's in one season is too many bigger races for me. Next season will have to big races and one bigger race to build up to mid season.
Monday, October 26, 2015
The Prep for Clermont Draft Legal Sprint and Challenge Florida
My running has been going really well for the last several weeks.
I rested a little after Redman but really continued on my long runs and fast runs without issues since then. Including the run at Redman I've had 5 good long runs and 5 good faster effort runs while continuing my easy days in between them.
The difference between last year's and this year's running is instead of doing threshold I'm doing short and fast intervals with 3 minutes of rest. I'm hoping that will help me run faster for the DL sprint.
The bike training has been going ok since the weather has been warmer but nowhere near where I was during the summer.
Swimming is going well, I've had 5 good weeks in the pool and now it's time to rest up and see how things are going to go.
This week will be easier with 4 days of running, 3 easier rides and swimming as I feel. I need to be at 100% to make it in the top 10 at the sprint, I don't know how that will turn out but I do have experience doing draft legal racing that I think others lack.
Now the last 2 weeks are here and I need to be smart and get my energy back.
I rested a little after Redman but really continued on my long runs and fast runs without issues since then. Including the run at Redman I've had 5 good long runs and 5 good faster effort runs while continuing my easy days in between them.
The difference between last year's and this year's running is instead of doing threshold I'm doing short and fast intervals with 3 minutes of rest. I'm hoping that will help me run faster for the DL sprint.
The bike training has been going ok since the weather has been warmer but nowhere near where I was during the summer.
Swimming is going well, I've had 5 good weeks in the pool and now it's time to rest up and see how things are going to go.
This week will be easier with 4 days of running, 3 easier rides and swimming as I feel. I need to be at 100% to make it in the top 10 at the sprint, I don't know how that will turn out but I do have experience doing draft legal racing that I think others lack.
Now the last 2 weeks are here and I need to be smart and get my energy back.
A followup from Redman (Long Course Nationals)
The race went pretty well but I was not as strong on the run as I hoped to be.
I had a solid swim, things went well. I stayed out of trouble in the beginning by staying to the right. It was a one loop swim and the first turn was a long ways off so I had time to settle in. Starting on the right makes me a little more comfortable cuz the water is calmer to my breathing side so in the beginning it's easier for me to breathe.
After things settled out I was looking for someone to follow, I found some feet a few times but really just hopped around from person to person. I remember being on someone's feet most of the return leg but I don't think it helped much.
There was a small (and by small I mean 6 inches) chop on the way out, it seemed like boat traffic waves but they were consistent. On the way back it appeared to be a little bigger but they were behind me by then.
On the bike the first goal was to get my HR down under 140bpm, it's an arbitrary number I picked because during training most of my pacing practice produced a HR of 135. It took me about 5 miles to get it down and then planned to ride on the short side of 170 watts. After a few miles I noticed there was someone about 100 yards ahead of me going the same speed so I figured rather than ride by myself I would sit 10 meters behind him and save some energy. It took another mile to close the gap and I settled in behind him. Shortly after than 4 or 5 guys passed me slowly and both of us latched onto them.
It seemed to me that all of these guys knew what they were doing, everyone stayed 7 to 10 meters apart and passed up from the back. When we went uphill everyone kept the same effort and rode smart. Sometimes a person would get off the front or fall off the back buy we seemed to ride well together for most of the time. There were a few guys that rode through us and the draft marshals were on us from mile 30 to 45 but we were clean. I saw a group of 20 people that was riding fairly close, I was with them for a few miles but they were going faster than I wanted to go and I held back.
Near 50 miles I dropped back to save some more energy since I knew my running was undertrained. It was a wise decision, as I was able to get my HR down nearer 130 and got ready for the run.
The run started off well, I short-stepped the beginning cuz I knew my fitness wouldn't support a fast run, after 5 miles I started dropping off and was really just holding on. My HR was really high for that effort but again I expected that. I wound up running a 1:47 which isn't too bad but is still a long way off of the 1:38 I ran last fall.
Lessons from this race:
Probably need to drink a little more on the bike. Drinking only 1.5 bottles might have contributed to the higher HR on the run. At Florida I'm going to try and get 1 bottle down in the first hour of the ride and see how things go. Hopefully I can get another bottle down in the next 1.5 hours.
Sitting 7 to 10 meters behind someone all of the time really helped the speed. I road 2:24 on 163 watts. That's about 7 watts saved.
Starting off conservative on the run was the right way to go again. I knew in the first 5 miles what kind of shape I was in. Still 4:47 in a half is good for me despite the run issues.
I had a solid swim, things went well. I stayed out of trouble in the beginning by staying to the right. It was a one loop swim and the first turn was a long ways off so I had time to settle in. Starting on the right makes me a little more comfortable cuz the water is calmer to my breathing side so in the beginning it's easier for me to breathe.
After things settled out I was looking for someone to follow, I found some feet a few times but really just hopped around from person to person. I remember being on someone's feet most of the return leg but I don't think it helped much.
There was a small (and by small I mean 6 inches) chop on the way out, it seemed like boat traffic waves but they were consistent. On the way back it appeared to be a little bigger but they were behind me by then.
On the bike the first goal was to get my HR down under 140bpm, it's an arbitrary number I picked because during training most of my pacing practice produced a HR of 135. It took me about 5 miles to get it down and then planned to ride on the short side of 170 watts. After a few miles I noticed there was someone about 100 yards ahead of me going the same speed so I figured rather than ride by myself I would sit 10 meters behind him and save some energy. It took another mile to close the gap and I settled in behind him. Shortly after than 4 or 5 guys passed me slowly and both of us latched onto them.
It seemed to me that all of these guys knew what they were doing, everyone stayed 7 to 10 meters apart and passed up from the back. When we went uphill everyone kept the same effort and rode smart. Sometimes a person would get off the front or fall off the back buy we seemed to ride well together for most of the time. There were a few guys that rode through us and the draft marshals were on us from mile 30 to 45 but we were clean. I saw a group of 20 people that was riding fairly close, I was with them for a few miles but they were going faster than I wanted to go and I held back.
Near 50 miles I dropped back to save some more energy since I knew my running was undertrained. It was a wise decision, as I was able to get my HR down nearer 130 and got ready for the run.
The run started off well, I short-stepped the beginning cuz I knew my fitness wouldn't support a fast run, after 5 miles I started dropping off and was really just holding on. My HR was really high for that effort but again I expected that. I wound up running a 1:47 which isn't too bad but is still a long way off of the 1:38 I ran last fall.
Lessons from this race:
Probably need to drink a little more on the bike. Drinking only 1.5 bottles might have contributed to the higher HR on the run. At Florida I'm going to try and get 1 bottle down in the first hour of the ride and see how things go. Hopefully I can get another bottle down in the next 1.5 hours.
Sitting 7 to 10 meters behind someone all of the time really helped the speed. I road 2:24 on 163 watts. That's about 7 watts saved.
Starting off conservative on the run was the right way to go again. I knew in the first 5 miles what kind of shape I was in. Still 4:47 in a half is good for me despite the run issues.
Friday, September 18, 2015
About 1 week out from Long Course Nationals
While preparing for this race I had an unexpected injury.
On Sept 6th I was participating in an Olympic distance race where I made a wrong turn and wound up dropping out of the race. I was pretty upset but oh well.
Since I didn't run I decided to run later in the evening, I needed a long easy run and this was a good opportunity to do it. The run was supposed to be 10 miles, nothing extraordinary, but didn't go as planned.
The run started off easy like normal but about 3 miles in my left hamstring started twitching. I've had aches and pains before so I decided to run through it. About 4 miles in I slowed way down and was getting a bit concerned, Karen drove by to check on me but the pain was going away so i waved her on.
It got better for the next mile or so, Karen drove by again and I waved her by like before. Right after that it started to hurt really bad, I was about 7 miles in and started taking walk breaks, then I wished I would have gotten in the car with Karen. I ran/walked for another 3/4 mile and saw Karen waiting for me near my 8 mile mark, I hobbled to the car thankful I didn't have to walk another 2 miles and drove to our destination.
It's unusual for me to get an injury, normally when I take time off it's because I've tired. I'm so close to a big race I needed to make sure it healed up completely rather than have it at 75% and still be fast. I've got 2 more races after this one so my season is no where near over.
I took the day after (Monday 9/7) off from running,
Tuesday I rode my bike, tried running but quickly bagged it.
Wednesday I rode easy then tried to run again, I got around a mile and bagged it.
Thursday I ran a mile after riding and then bagged it, it felt better though.
Friday I ran 4 miles at lunch, the hamstring still twitched a bit but it was better,
Saturday I rode 80 miles and ran 3 miles, it was OK.
Sunday I ran 7 miles at Island Lake, it was twitching around 6 miles so I just ran back to the car and waited for Karen to finish swimming. I ran 2 miles later that evening, it was OK.
Monday I took off from running and just swam, I felt great in the pool and got 4000 yards in.
Tuesday I ran 4 miles at lunch, I stretched my hamstrings very thoroughly and felt much better. Later that day I rode, 3X10' very strong and felt great, I wanted to run afterwards but didn't just because I was concerned about healing up.
Wednesday I wanted to run long, my goal was 10 miles and hoped to run 12 if I was feeling well but would have been happy with 8 miles. I wound up running 13.1 miles and felt pretty good. I felt a few twinges but I really think they were from my lack of running and not from the injury. All the miles were easy so I wouldn't stress anything.
Thursday (yesterday) I rode 3X20' HIM pace on the bike then ran 5K afterwards, I felt good but noticed my lack of fast run practice. The leg/hamstring felt good and stretching seems to help a lot.
Now Friday, 8 days out from LCN I feel healthy but and concerned about run speed. I need to have a very good run to make Team USA, I figure I need to go under 1:40 combined with a strong swim and bike. Today I'll swim only to make sure my leg is healing up.
Plans for the near future:
Saturday: Swim open water, bike ~45 miles and run easy
Sunday: Run 10 miles max with last half at HIM pace ~7:45
Monday: Swim, Run easy
Tuesday: Bike moderate maybe run
Wednesday: Run easy, start driving
Thursday: Finish driving, maybe bike
Friday: Easy bike, run a mile or two
Saturday: Race, start driving home
Sunday: Finish driving home
Tuesday, August 18, 2015
Friday, July 03, 2015
Monday, June 29, 2015
Friday, June 19, 2015
Tuesday, June 09, 2015
Wednesday, May 20, 2015
Tuesday, March 03, 2015
Signed up for:
HFP Georgia Training camp 4/6-12
Triple T Camp 5/1-3 (15 people / 3 Cabins)
American Triple T 5/17-19
Rev3 Rush 5/30/31
TTF Series throughout the summer
TTF Middle of the Mit 6/20
TTF Selfridge Air Base 6/28
TTF Caseville 7/12
TTF Race for the Border 7/26
TTF Stony Off-road 8/9
TTF Holly 8/26 (Wednesday)
HFP Georgia Training camp 4/6-12
Triple T Camp 5/1-3 (15 people / 3 Cabins)
American Triple T 5/17-19
Rev3 Rush 5/30/31
TTF Series throughout the summer
TTF Middle of the Mit 6/20
TTF Selfridge Air Base 6/28
TTF Caseville 7/12
TTF Race for the Border 7/26
TTF Stony Off-road 8/9
TTF Holly 8/26 (Wednesday)
Sunday, February 08, 2015
Sunday, January 04, 2015
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